Archaeology

Human culture and evolution has evolved over thousands of years, the majority of which occur in prehistory at times of limited or non-existent record keeping, hampered by literacy and preservation of any written documents which were created; archaeology provides the methods for studying prehistory where such written documents are lacking. Archaeology draws upon a range of techniques to form an understanding of how culture evolved, and which forces could have been responsible for shaping our society in the modern age.

Stable isotope analysis is a powerful tool in chemical archaeology, allowing archaeologists to reconstruct ancient diets through the analysis of preserved bone collagen with the aim of determining changes in land use, when and how farming or fishing practices were adopted, and environmental pressures which may have forced changes in such practices. Analysis of burial materials can help to elucidate practices of religious or spiritual significance, whilst the study of residues left behind in archaeological pottery can cast light on the uses of those vessels. The use of multiple isotopes can be utilised to determine geographical origins and migration patterns, ultimately enabling an understanding of the rich and vibrant history of humankind through the ages.

Reconstruct ancient diets

One of the most fascinating aspects of archaeology is understanding the daily habits of ancient peoples. Chief among these is food – what sustained the ancients? Did primary food sources change over time? Seasonally? What about over the course of an Empire’s life? Was a change in diet responsible for the fall of an empire? All this can be revealed through isotopic signatures of hair, bones, and teeth compared to modern humans with known diets. With our leading elemental analyzers for stable isotope analysis (EA-IRMS) you can probe the ancients for their secrets.

Reveal what was traded, anointed and stored

Residues recovered from clay pottery can help uncover religious practices, show what products were economically viable, or simply what food stuffs sustained a society. Geographical origins can be deduced from 18O and 2H analysis, whilst primary sources for the residues can be got from 13C, 15N and 34S analysis. Both compound-specific analysis via gas chromatography (GC-IRMS) and bulk measurement by elemental analysis (EA-IRMS) can be carried out quickly, simply and reliably.

Unveil migration patterns

History is marked by the movement of people, whether it is entire populations or groups of individuals colonizing new lands. To detect this, 18O and 2H isotope analysis of hair or bone and teeth allows the individual to be directly related to their origin thanks to the natural meteorological variation of the water in their source environment. Our iso FLOW, driven by the UltiTrap, can be used for high-throughput, fully automated analysis of biogenic carbonate and meteorological water.

Archeological science publications using our instruments

Our customers use our instruments to do some amazing research in the archeology application field. To show you how they perform their research and how they use our IRMS instruments, we have collected a range of peer-reviewed publications which cite our products. You can find the citations below and then follow the links to the publishing journal should you wish to download the publication.

If you would like to investigate our available citations in more detail, or email the citation list to yourself or your colleagues then take a look at our full citation database.

The oxygen isotope relationship between the phosphate and structural carbonate fractions of human bioapatiteRapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry (2012)

RATIONALE Oxygen isotope analysis of archaeological human dental enamel is widely used as a proxy for the drinking water composition (δ18ODW) of the individual and thus can be used as an indicator of their childhood place of origin. In this paper we demonstrate the robustness of structural carbonate oxygen isotope values (δ18OC) in bioapatite to preserve the life signal of human tooth enamel by comparing it with phosphate oxygen isotope values (δ18OP) derived from the same archaeological human tooth enamel samples. METHODS δ18OC analysis was undertaken on 51 archaeological tooth enamel samples previously analysed for δ18OP values and strontium isotopes. δ18OC values were determined on a GV IsoPrime dual inlet mass spectrometer, following a series of methodological tests to assess: (1) The reaction time needed to ensure complete release of CO2 from structural carbonate in the enamel; (2) The effect of an early pre-treatment with dilute acetic acid to remove diagenetic carbonate; (3) Analytical error; (4) Intra-tooth variation; and (5) Diagenetic alteration. RESULTS This study establishes a direct relationship between δ18OC and δ18OP values from human tooth enamel (δ18OP = 1.0322 × δ18OC – 9.6849). We have combined this equation with the drinking water equation of Daux et al. (J. Hum. Evol. 2008, 55, 1138) to allow direct calculation of δ18ODW values from human bioapatite δ18OC (δ18ODW = 1.590 × δ18OC – 48.634). CONCLUSIONS This is the first comprehensive study of the relationship between the ionic forms of oxygen (phosphate oxygen and structural carbonate) in archaeological human dental enamel. The new equation will allow direct comparison of data produced by the different methods and allow drinking water values to be calculated from structural carbonate data with confidence

We have used a high-precision, easy, low-cost and rapid method of oxygen isotope analysis applied to various O-bearing matrices, organic and inorganic (sulfates, nitrates and phosphates), whose (18)O/(16)O ratios had already been measured. It was first successfully applied to (18)O analyses of natural and synthetic phosphate samples. The technique uses high-temperature elemental analysis-pyrolysis (EA-pyrolysis) interfaced in continuous-flow mode to an isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) system. Using the same pyrolysis method we have been able to generate a single calibration curve for all those samples showing pyrolysis efficiencies independent of the type of matrix pyrolysed. We have also investigated this matrix-dependent pyrolysis issue using a newly developed pyrolysis technique involving 'purge-and-trap' chromatography. As previously stated, silver phosphate being a very stable material, weakly hygroscopic and easily synthesized with predictable (18)O/(16)O values, could be considered as a good candidate to become a reference material for the determination of (18)O/(16)O ratios by EA-pyrolysis-IRMS.

Multiproxy reconstruction of the palaeoclimate and palaeoenvironment of the Middle Miocene Somosaguas site (Madrid, Spain) using herbivore dental enamelPalaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology (2009)

Profound palaeoclimatic changes took place during the Middle Miocene. The Miocene Climatic Optimum (∼20 to 14–13.5 Ma) was followed by a sudden (∼200 ka) decrease in temperature and an increase in aridity around the world as a consequence of the reestablishment of the ice cap in Antarctica. Somosaguas palaeontological site (Madrid Basin, Spain) has provided a rich record of mammal remains coincident with this global event (Middle Miocene Biozone E,14.1–13.8 Ma). It contains four fossiliferous levels (T1, T3-1, T3-2 and T3-3, with T1 being the oldest) that span an estimated time of ∼105–125 ka. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Rare Earth Element (REE) analyses performed on herbivore tooth enamel (Gomphotherium angustidens, Anchitherium cf. A. cursor, Conohyus simorrensis, Prosantorhinus douvillei and ruminants) indicate that diagenetic processes have not been intense enough as to obscure the original geochemical signal. Stable isotope (δ18OCO3, δ13CCO3 and δ18OPO4) analyses have been measured on the herbivore tooth enamel across these levels with the aim of determining to what extent the global cooling and aridity pattern is recorded at this site. A decrease in δ18OCO3 and δ18OPO4 has been detected from T1 to T3-3 and T3-1 to T3-3 respectively indicating a progressive drop of about 6 °C (from around 18 °C to 12 °C) in mean annual temperatures within T3. Tooth enamel δ13C values experience an increase from T3-1 to T3-3 suggesting an increase in aridity. Ba/Ca analyses have also been performed on the tooth enamel in order to detect changes in the palaeoecology of the studied taxa. This ratio allows the establishment of particular feeding patterns such as a more browsing habit in the case of Gomphotherium angustidens compared to Anchitherium cf. A. cursor as suggested by higher Ba/Ca values in the latter. Trace elements do not support any significant change across the succession in the dietary behaviour of the species analyzed, despite the stable isotopes evidence of an important palaeoclimatic shift from T1 to T3-3

Isotope sourcing of prehistoric willow and tule textiles recovered from western Great Basin rock shelters and caves – proof of conceptJournal of Archaeological Science (2006)

L.V. Benson, E.M. Hattori, H.E. Taylor, S.R. Poulson, E.a. Jolie

Isotope and trace-metal analyses were used to determine the origin of plants used to manufacture prehistoric textiles (basketry and matting) from archaeological sites in the western Great Basin. Research focused on strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and oxygen (18O/16O) isotope ratios of willow (Salix sp.) and tule (Schoenoplectus sp.), the dominant raw materials in Great Basin textiles. The oxygen-isotope data indicated that the willow and tule used to produce the textiles were harvested from the banks of rivers or in marshes characterized by flowing water and not from lakes or sinks. The strontium-isotope data were useful in showing which plants came from the Humboldt River and which came from rivers headed in the Sierra Nevada

Fiona Petchey, Roger Green

In archaeological dating, the greatest confidence is usually placed upon radiocarbon results of material that can be directly related to a defined archaeological event. Human bone should fulfill this requirement, but bone dates obtained from Pacific sites are often perceived as problematic due to the incorporation of 14C from a range of different reservoirs into the collagen via diet. In this paper, we present new human bone gelatin results for 2 burials from the SAC archaeological site on Watom Island, Papua New Guinea, and investigate the success of calibrating these determinations using dietary corrections obtained from δ34S, δ15N, and δ13C isotopes.

Elementar – your partner for elemental analysis

Elementar is the world leader in high performance analysis of organic elements. Continuous innovation, creative solutions and comprehensive support form the foundation of the Elementar brand, ensuring our products continue to advance science across agronomy, chemical, environmental, energy, materials and forensics markets in more than 80 countries.

Elementar - a proud member of the Laboratory Products Association

The Laboratory Products Association aims to enable its members to consistently improve their global and commercial success by providing them with unique opportunities in networking, market information, education, and government legislative/regulatory advocacy.